Trey Canard | Rejuvenation – Red Bull KTM&#039;s Newest Recruit

The 2017 season is going to feature a number of changes when it comes to the race teams and their lineups of riders, but one of the more talked about team changes for next year is Trey Canard’s transition to KTM. After spending his entire professional career – and even some of his amateur years – aboard Geico and HRC Honda’s, Canard has officially moved to Team Red Bull KTM for 2017. Recently, we checked in with Trey to see how everything’s been going with all of the new changes, and this is what he had to say…

New year, new season and you’ve got a few new changes to go along with it all. What’s been going on?Quite a bit, actually (laughs). Like you said there have been a few changes in my program, but it’s all been for the good. There are obviously a lot of differences that I’m adjusting to, but it’s all been for the right reason and it’s been a good time. I really enjoy riding again and it’s because of this bike. This has been a fairly seamless transition even though a lot has happened. It’s just another day at the office (laughs).

Anaheim is literally just around the corner. Did it creep up on you like it does everyone else?Yeah, you always think to yourself that it’s so far down the road, but then all of a sudden it’s right around the corner. This is exciting for me though; I’m not stressed about getting used to the bike or the team anything like that. I am very excited!

Besides the obvious changes with the bike and the team, have there been any other changes to your program?Yeah, but so far everything has been pretty normal. I actually sold my property, so that’s definitely a difference. The team brings so many changes in itself with a new mechanic and other personnel, so I’ve been getting to know everyone else. I really enjoyed the fresh air though, and I’m looking forward to racing with these guys.

After so many years in the professional ranks on the same manufacturer, it has to be pretty exciting to have a change of this magnitude, right?Yeah, absolutely. It’s always nice to have change because change it’s a good thing. It brings back that excitement that some of us lose over the years. To be where I’m at right now is a bit of a rejuvenation.

How does the dynamic of Team KTM compared to Team Honda?There are some definite differences. It all trickles down from the top though, and it’s only right that a Japanese manufacturer does things differently then an Austrian manufacturer. One thing that I’ve really enjoyed over here and KTM is the fact that everyone is into racing. By no means am I saying that isn’t the case at Honda, but to see the president of KTM at the team introduction here in Corona, CA is pretty cool. He’s talking about Supercross testing and all that kind of stuff, so it’s nice to see that sort of thing. To be honest, I was a little nervous coming to Red Bull KTM because they have two stars in Ryan and Marvin and everyone seems pretty settled in over here. I didn’t really know how that was going to work, but everyone over here works really well as a team and it’s a pleasure to be a part of that.

What about your training on the bike? Is anything going to change?I’m going to continue to work with Tim Ferry and Dean Gulch on my own program. Hopefully I’ll get the chance to ride with Marvin and Ryan because I think that’s something that I can benefit from.

There are some obvious differences in Hondas between KTMs. Was that a hard transition for you when I came to the machine?Not at all. I’m very happy with where I’m at when it comes to the bike. It’s hard to compare the two bikes back-to-back because they both shine in their own ways, and they really don’t have any similarities. I’m really happy with the way these bikes work and I’m excited to put them to the test come January.